Special Sales That Aren't - And Make You Feel So UN-Special
Something troubling is happening this holiday season. I don't know that it's totally new but it is alarming me in the degree to which it is showing up. As we all pause for a few moments in the US to give thanks there is a gathering darkness impending in the form of what I am hearing called "Black Friday".
Black Friday?
I'm informed that this is the term being used to identify the Friday after Thanksgiving Day when we pull out all the shopping stops for the mad rush to the gift-giving season. I really find this troubling. It calls to mind a 1977 movie starring Bruce Dern (Black Sunday) as an unhinged veteran set on a mission of mayhem and murder at the Super Bowl. Maybe that's the image they intend I have.
Major department stores are promoting "one day only" specials that start at 5 AM on Friday morning. (Maybe the "black" refers to the mood of the shopper or the hour of the day.)
Do those retailers really believe that this hyper-stressed, early morning, one-day-only shopping madness is going to massively increase sales or (shudder) customer loyalty?
This is making me re-think any plans I might have for offering premiums for early purchase. It is just wrong-thinking in my opinion to make the buying process into an hysterical, pressured, feeding frenzy.
Parenthetically:
Black Tuesday - Oct. 29, 1929, notorious date of the stock market crash which heralded the onset of the Great Depression.
For more "Black" days of the week, reference WikiPedia. (N.B.: while you will find the references entertaining, please check other resources besides WikiPedia before using it as a reference for you masters thesis or term paper.)
Black Friday?
I'm informed that this is the term being used to identify the Friday after Thanksgiving Day when we pull out all the shopping stops for the mad rush to the gift-giving season. I really find this troubling. It calls to mind a 1977 movie starring Bruce Dern (Black Sunday) as an unhinged veteran set on a mission of mayhem and murder at the Super Bowl. Maybe that's the image they intend I have.
Major department stores are promoting "one day only" specials that start at 5 AM on Friday morning. (Maybe the "black" refers to the mood of the shopper or the hour of the day.)
Do those retailers really believe that this hyper-stressed, early morning, one-day-only shopping madness is going to massively increase sales or (shudder) customer loyalty?
This is making me re-think any plans I might have for offering premiums for early purchase. It is just wrong-thinking in my opinion to make the buying process into an hysterical, pressured, feeding frenzy.
Parenthetically:
Black Tuesday - Oct. 29, 1929, notorious date of the stock market crash which heralded the onset of the Great Depression.
For more "Black" days of the week, reference WikiPedia. (N.B.: while you will find the references entertaining, please check other resources besides WikiPedia before using it as a reference for you masters thesis or term paper.)
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